Good Morning Class

When I was in school the words "Good Morning Class" were never looked upon as being a sign of good things to come for more often than not they were followed by the phrase "today we are going to have a test"! YIKES - and I didn't study! Oh, if I had only "applied myself" as my mother had so often suggested. How was it that she was always right?!?!?!

Well, even today, a few decades later, I still don't love tests. These days that word is often used in the same sentence as the words needle and blood but even so, we just naturally have a propensity to panic at the thought of a test. And yet, as I read God's Word I find that He has directed us in 1 Thessalonians 5:21 to "Test everything." Now that's a bit extreme wouldn't you say? A pop quiz once in awhile - ok, maybe - but 'test everything'? Well, just for grins and giggles, let's try to see this from God's perspective . . .
Let's start by testing our conversations:
~ Is what I'm saying the truth as found in God's Word?
~ If no, our recourse seems obvious.
~ If yes, then speak the truth BUT REMEMBER even the truth must be tempered with just the right amount of God's mercy and love AND timing is critical - in order for it to be right and effective, it must be said in God's timing!
So, ok, I agree that testing the things I say is a good thing.

So now let's go further and test our thoughts:
~ Are our thoughts moving us toward God or away from Him and His truths?
~ When considering this I am lead to confess to you that I had a day recently when testing my thoughts would have been a gem in my crown. As the day unfolded I came face to face with the reality that had circumstances been just a little bit different, my life may have come to an end. Well, by the end of the day I was full of fears of what 'could have been'.
~Looking back I now realize that I would have avoided the exercise of slip and slide if only I had taken the time to test my thoughts .
Once again, the idea of testing seems to point to good things - who knew?!

Well, the truth is that God did. That's why His Word tells us to do it. That's why it's so important to seek His guidance and discernment and wisdom and knowledge. This is the gem in our crown . . . if only we will ask for it.

So, how about you, are you ready to wake up tomorrow morning and hear the Lord say to you, Good Morning ____, today we're going to have a test? Considering the blessing that this exercise brings to our general well being, the goal at the end of my day will be to hear Him say to me "Well done, my good and faithful servant". All of a sudden I'm anxious to test my attitudes, my emotions, and my 'knee jerk' reactions. Once again . . . who knew!!!

Lord God, Your care of my well being is a treasure to me. Knowing that You remain by my side and offer guidance and protection gives me the strength I need to face the challenges of my day. Thank You, Jesus, for showing me the importance of testing - everything. It is in Your Name, Jesus, that I offer endless praise for Your loving care of all of Your creation!
Amen and Amen
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Forgiveness is our Choice

It is written in John 3:36 "Whoever believes in the Son has eternal life, but whoever rejects the Son will not see life, for God's wrath remains on him."

In knowing the truth of that statement I'm quite sure that it's safe to assume that the man who brought carnage to the City of Binghamton yesterday won't be among those who will gather with the angels and eternally sing heavenly praises to the Lord.

But wait a minute, what about the truth that says we serve a forgiving God? Oh, you say, this man was full of darkness and death, his sins are so grave that surely God will judge him guilty and forgiveness will not come. Because of the choices this man made in his life 'God's wrath remains on him'.

From everything I've read thus far I believe that I would have to agree with that assessment . . . but as I consider the fact that in God's sight . . . sin is sin . . . instantly I feel true conviction come over me to now look at my own life and consider whether or not I hold on to choices that would obligate God to pour his wrath out upon me.

Don't get me wrong, I'm a good person. I go to church, I humbly serve God and His people. I love those around me (well, most of them), I'm honest (well, most of the time). I follow the teachings that Jesus gave us (well, nearly all of them). But listen, I know that God is a forgiving God - surely the Lord's judgement of me will be much different than this man's. His sins are much worse than mine.

Again I consider the fact that in God's sight . . . sin is sin, is sin, is sin.

Consider what Christ Himself said to the woman who was judged by those around her to be sinful and worthy of stoning (wrath) - "go and sin no more". Through His mercy Christ forgave her of the sin she committed and saved her from being stoned - but if you recall, that wasn't the end of the story, for after forgiving her, He added the command that instructed her to "go and sin no more."

It's true, we all have the FINAL say in His forgiveness . . . our choices - just like those of that man yesterday in Binghamton - will bring us life forever with Christ or it will bring us eternal separation from Him.

Father God, we know that Your Word tells us that you are a just God. In Your powerful name, Jesus, we ask that you help us, Lord, to have a full understanding of that truth so that we are willing to 'go and sin no more'.

Amen and Amen
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The Truth Behind The Name

The truth behind the name of my blog is that the Lord has, indeed, given me the heart of an encourager. Rarely do I recognize it as other people do - it's just who I am - but all of us are commanded to step up and encourage one another . . . let me offer this as an example of the command given to us: It is written in 1 Thessalonians 4:16-18 "For the Lord Himself will come down from heaven, with a loud command, with the voice of the archangel and with the trumpet call of God, and the dead in Christ will rise first. After that, we who are still alive and are left will be caught up together with them in the clouds to meet the Lord in the air. And so we will be with the Lord forever. Therefore encourage each other with these words."

There you have it. Our command to encourage one another. And what better way is there to encourage someone than to tell them about the rapture! Just think about it - we who are 'born again' - we who have accepted Christ as our Savior AND have chosen to follow Him as our Lord - will be caught up with Him in the air and we will then be with Him FOREVER! First those who have already died and then His beloved who are still alive. All of us will join Him.

How about you? If you were to die today - this moment - what do you believe would happen to you? Or if the Lord decides to return tonight to rapture His beloved as they sleep . . . will you be one of those who is caught up in the air with Him - or will you be left behind to endure the trials of darkness that are promised?

Well, you will join Him IF you're 'born again'. Oh, I know, the phrase 'born again' is a bit misused so it's hard sometimes to think of it without associating it with a redneck cowboy . . . but according to John 3:3, Jesus Himself declared, "I tell you the truth, no one can see the Kingdom of God unless he is born again."

Let's see if I can explain . . . no, when you're 'born again' you don't reenter your mother's womb and make a second exit . . . being 'born again' speaks of your spiritual birth. Spiritually speaking you accept Christ as God's son who came into this world to save you from your sins. In this way Christ becomes your Savior. Then, you follow Christ's teachings. In this way Christ becomes the Lord of your life.
When you are 'born again':
~ You worship Jesus. You put Him first before anything or any one,
~ Your daily desire is to develop a relationship with Him,
~ You allow Him to rule and control your attitude, your thoughts, your actions . . . your heart.
~ You realize that life is all about HIM - and not about you!
And remember . . . Jesus Himself declared that you will NOT go to heaven unless you choose to accept and follow Him.

So, as it so often happens, the choice is yours. If you choose Light over darkness . . . Eternal Life over eternal death . . . then let me suggest that you join Joshua in saying "As for me and my house, we will serve the Lord." Let me also say . . . welcome into the family of the beloved!

Father God, thank you so much for directing Jesus to be the way, and the truth, and the life that will enable us to be with you forever into eternity. Thank You, Jesus, for your willingness to be obedient to the Father's will and thank You, Holy Spirit, for leading me in the paths that will lead to everlasting life with You, forever, in heaven.
It is in the mighty name of Jesus that I give you glory and honor and praise and heartfelt thanks. Amen and Amen.
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What an Incredible Blessing . . .

Have you ever spent the evening with a group of people whose sole purpose for gathering together was to bring about a reenactment, through a church production, of the final days of Christ's life on this earth? On many occasions I've been on the receiving end as I sat in the audience but tonight, as preparations were being made for opening night, I was privileged to have my first 'behind the scenes' experience.

I was the proverbial fish out of water as I stood back and watched the masters at work. I marveled at their vision and creativity. With the props gathered and flowers perfectly arranged, the vision began to unfold. In their mind's eye they literally saw a marketplace come to life as they looked at 3 empty tables, some dried garlic and a collection of pottery.

As I stood back and took a moment to enjoy the experience, it occurred to me that from time to time you'll hear someone say that they don't need to be part of a church family. They can watch TV and learn everything that they need to know about God without going to church. Well, after the evening that I just had I would have to challenge that way of thinking. At home you don't see the smiles of the costumers who seem to delight at the opportunity of outfitting the 'crowd' with traditional props and garb one more time. You don't encounter the laughter of the kids who stand back and watch to see how 'funny' dad will look when he is decked out in a shepherd's 'dress'. And when you're home without the relationships that come when you're part of a church family, you miss the incredible experience of being in the midst of cooperation and camaraderie and pure discipleship.

Tonight as people gathered together to close out the evening we were privy to the efforts of the 'crowd' as they rehearsed the scene that brought chills to our bones. You know the one . . . Pilate is holding court and after being unable to find any fault in Jesus he asks the crowd "What crime has this man committed?" to which they reply "Crucify him! Crucify him! Crucify him!"

It is then that you realize fully the importance of the cooperation and camaraderie. It is then that you understand why the men, women and children of this area need to see the fruit of our evening together. And it is then that you are eternally grateful that you have this church family to call your own.

In great thanksgiving, for all of Your blessings, Lord, may our efforts bring glory to Your Name Jesus.
Amen and Amen.
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A New Appreciation

When is the last time that you gave thanks for a hurt that came into your life? In 1 Thessalonians 5:18 it is written "Give thanks in everything". Even in Job we find that it didn't seem to matter what calamity entered into his life, Job refused to do anything but give praise where praise was due.

Although I've never had to (nor do I ask to) endure the events of Job's life, recently I did run into a situation in which my feelings were hurt. Pain being pain and God being God it quickly became obvious that I needed to call upon the Lord to make this a Romans 8:28 event. Although I held myself together well enough to get through the class I was in, as soon as the final prayer was prayed I bee lined it out of there so that I could do what comes naturally to me . . . cry.

Over the years I remember hearing it said that God loves us to much to leave us where we're at and to that I say . . . THANK YOU LORD!!! Almost immediately I could sense that He provided Himself as the answer to my pain so without any hesitation I turned to Him for wisdom and insight.

As He worked me through the pain He helped me to realize that the old Bonnie would have harbored resentment, developed animosity and proudly worn a chip on my shoulder like a peacock pluming out his feathers . . . but not this time. This time was different because He helped me to see that in order for me to be all that He made me to be I really needed to endure this pain.
~ The pain enabled me to realize that there was dross that needed to be burned off. This 'gem' needed to be refined and that process meant that I had to go through the 'fire' of this pain.
~ The pain enabled me to realize that over the course of many years I had believed lies . . . like, you are the way you are and you can't change,/ you won't change, / you don't need to change. I developed a hardness in my heart which housed a judgmental spirit and although I should have known better, it took this pain to see the truth.

Thanks to Christ in me (my hope of glory!) the new Bonnie is eager to grow. How thankful I am that, through the power of the Holy Spirit, I have the courage to address the issue with the person who hurt my feelings. (Now that's what I call real growth!) No baggage - HALLELUJAH - THANK YOU LORD!!

A training note . . . I'm sure that as I step out in faith and allow the Lord to stretch and grow me, I will mess up again from time to time. In that regard, I give thanks for I now know the love and encouragement that I can count on from those who the Lord has put around me.

Lord Jesus, may glory come to You through the feeble efforts of this humble and precious 'gem'.
I love you Lord.
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What Pleases Him?

In Psalm 135:6 it is written "The Lord does whatever pleases Him, in the heavens and on earth."
In Philippians 2:13 (NLT) it is written "For God is working in you, giving you the desire and the power to do what pleases Him."

After reading these two verses I suspect that for someone who doesn't know His very nature, there may be a chance that our God could be thought of as being arrogant. Don't you suppose that there is a possibility that someone might mistakenly view Him as being selfish or self-centered?

Ah, but the secret is to know Him. To know what pleases Him.

Well let's see if we can uncover this mystery . . .
~ in 1 John 4:8 it is written "God is Love" so let's assume that it pleases Him when we love.
~ Certainly, by the beauty that is all around us it is obvious that He is a generous God so let's add to our list the presumption that He is pleased when we use the gifts and talents that He gives us.
~ In His very nature He is love, joy and peace. He is faithfulness, kindness, gentleness and goodness. And when dealing with me every day, He is the personification of patience and self control. It would be absurd to think that He did not enjoy pleasure when the Holy Spirit gives us these same gifts that display His glory. Displaying them in own lives is like icing on His cake!
~ The process of sanctification is His way of growing us into the likeness of His Son so it's a 100% money back guarantee that He experiences enormous pleasure to see us mirror the obedience of His Son.

Well, so far no arrogance. No selfishness and not even a hint of self-centeredness, so let's go on. We know what it is that brings Him pleasure, what then do you think He may be giving us the desire and power to do?
~ To reach out in love to those who are unlovable, hurting or sick?
~ To be kind to someone who hurts us?
~ To bring the beauty of His world to a home bound person?
~ To step out beyond what you are comfortable doing?
~ To yearn for righteousness?
~ To set down idols that stand between you and the Father?
You have because He loves.
The desire you have to know Him is because He gives you that desire.
The more you are willing to accept the things He wants to give you, and do in your life, the greater His pleasure in you will be.
BUT WAIT . . .
IF it seems that you have been dealt a short hand - maybe you feel that your life is lacking some or all of these things that please Him, does that mean that God withheld His goodness from you? Was He less generous with you? Does He love you less? - - - NO! He is no respecter of persons so He is generous without favoritism. You and the next person are equally equipped to bring Him pleasure but the ultimate choice rests with your willingness to allow all of His goodness into your life.
IT'S ALL ABOUT CHOICES . . . THAT CENTER ON HIM
Lord, I choose You. I choose your Son. My hands are empty. Fill them, I pray, with your power - Help me Lord - for my hearts desire is to please you.
Amen and Amen.
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Who Drove The Nails?

Have you ever REALLY thought about it?
Were you mistaken . . . like me?
Who flogged and ravaged His body?
Who gave their voice to crucify Him?
The Jews?
The Roman soldiers?
No - I was wrong . . . "they" didn't do it.
It was me.
I turned from Him.
I gave Him over to unfathomable cruelty.
I raised my hand to torture His body.
I sent gripping agony through Him.
I cracked the whip that gouged His flesh.
I positioned the nail in the most strategic spot.
I held the hammer that drove those nails.
Because of me He hung on that Cross.
Because of me He suffered and died.
God help me . . . IT WAS ME.

But PRAISE GOD . . . the love that is God Himself was greater than any evil that I could inflict.
He overcame my evil with His love.
No scars. Only forgiveness and total victory.
He has, once again, displayed His glory.

So . . . the question isn't how could they have done it.
The question isn't how could I have done it.
The REAL question is . . . HOW COULD HE HAVE DONE IT!

He has, once again, proven that it's not about me . . .
IT'S ALL ABOUT HIM!

Thank You Jesus. My love for You grows beyond measure daily as I uncover the depths of Your love for me. Truly, YOU are worthy of my praise and worship.

Hallelujah.
Amen and Amen.
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